Bag sealer

ABSTRACT

A BAG SEALER HAVING A PAIR OF HINGEDLY INTERCONNECTED SEGMENTS, ONE OF SAID SEGMENTS CARRYING A LOCKING HEAD AND THE OTHER SEGMENT DEFINING A POCKET FOR RECEIVING SAID LOCKING HEAD WHEREBY TO RETAIN IN JUXTAPOSED, SEALED RELATIONSHIP THE FLEXIBLE WALLS OF A BAG DISPOSED THEREBETWEEN.

Nov. 23, 197] R. L. AYERS 3,621,539

BAG smmm Filed Feb. 27, 1970 INVENTOR Ralph L. Ayers B W) 16490412 20 Y WMM.

ATTORNEYS.

United States Patent Oifice 3,621,539 Patented Nov. 23, 1971 3,621,539 BAG SEALER Ralph L. Ayers, Kansas City, Mo., assignor to Variform Plastics, Inc., Kansas City, Mo. Filed Feb. 27, 1970, Ser. No. 15,005 Int. tCl. B6511 77/10 US. Cl. 24-305 R Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A bag sealer having a pair of hingedly interconnected segments, one of said segments carrying a locking head and the other segment defining a pocket for receiving said locking head whereby to retain in juxtaposed, sealed relationship the flexible walls of a bag disposed therebetween.

This invention relates to retaining clips and, more particularly, to a clip which is especially well suited for use as a sealing device for bags having walls of flexible material.

It is an important object of my present invention to provide a bag sealer which, because of its simplified, yet effective, one-piece construction may be manufactured at a low cost, is easily manipulated, and may be repeatedly used for a variety of jobs.

Another important object of the instant invention is to provide a bag sealing clip having a locking head on one segment which snaps into a receiving pocket on another segment to create an effective airtight seal of a pair of bag walls placed between the locking head and the pocket.

A further object of my invention is the provision of a flat stretch on one segment of the clip which is suitable for receiving indicia for advertisement purposes or other uses.

Yet another object of my invention is to provide a clip which may be manufactured in a variety of sizes to accommodate variations in uses thereof, yet which is equally effective as a sealing device in each size.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary, end elevational view of the bag sealer showing it in the open position for reception of a pair of sheets of flexible material;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, front elevational view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary, vertical cross-sectional view of the bag sealer of FIG. 1 showing the same in a closed position;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary, rear elevational view thereof; and

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary, perspective view of the bag sealer in a sealing position.

The bag sealer is denoted generally by the numeral and comprises a pair of hingedly interconnected segments 12 and 14 which are preferably of a resilient material such as plastic or the like. Segment 14 defines a pocket 16. A locking head 18 is provided on the other segment 12, which head 18 may be shifted into and out of pocket 16 whereby to retain in juxtaposed relationship a pair of sheets 20 and 22 of flexible material disposed between segments 12 and 14.

The segments 12 and 14 are interconnected by a neck portion 24 which is formed by the tapering ends 26 and 28 of segments 12 and 14 respectively. The neck portion 24 presents a line of weakness 30 about which segments 12 and 14 may hinge so that an opening 32 between locking head 18 and pocket 16 may be formed to permit reception of the sheets 20 and 22.

Segment 14 is generally transversely Lshaped, presenting a flat stretch 34 which extends from end 28 and terminates in a hook portion 36 at the opposite end 38 thereof. The hook portion 36 forms the pocket 16, there being an inner surface 40 partially defining the boundaries of pocket 16. Projecting into pocket 16 from one end 42 of hook portion 36 is a bead 44.

Segment 12 has a generally transversely U-shaped stretch 46 extending from the end 26 thereof which presents a pair of legs 48 and 50 having a bight 52 therebetween. Continuing from the leg 48 is an outwardly projecting, curved extension 54 which carries the locking head 18. A series of ribs 56 extend laterally across the outside of leg 48. The locking head 18 is in the nature of a cylinder or rod as shown in FIG. 1 and presents a curved, outer surface 58 which is complemental to the inner surface 40 of the hook portion 36 of segment 14.

It is important to note that the sheets of flexible material 20 and 22 may consist of loose sheets of paper which are to be clipped together, or they may be the paper or plastic walls of a bag which are to be tightly sealed by clip 10. FIG. 1 illustrates the open position of the clip 10 wherein the segments 12 and 14 are pivoted about the line of weakness 30 to present opening 32. With the clip 10 in this position, the sheets 20 and 22 may be introduced into the area between segments 12 and 14 so that the uppermost end of sheets 20 and 22, as viewed in FIG. 1, are brought into the vicinity of the bight 52 on segment 12 for alignment. A closing motion brings the locking head 18 against sheet 20 and the bead 44 against the sheet 22. A further effort will cause locking head 18 to snap past bead 44 and into pocket 16 so that sheets 20 and 22 are firmly clamped between surface 58 of locking head 18 and surface 40 of hook portion 36. The resiliency and flexibility of the material being sealed with clip 10 insures that, if need be, an airtight seal may be created in this manner. Further, the bead 44 insures that the locking head 18 will not accidentally slip out once it has 'been snapped into position in pocket 16. Clip 10 is therefore, particularly well suited for sealing the open end of a bag containing perishables. It may be conveniently used for the first air-tight seal of the bag, or to reseal a bag which has previously had its factory seal broken.

As shown in FIGS. 35, once the segments 12 and 14 have been clamped about sheets 20 and 22, the clip 10 has a tendency to invert itself, thereby presenting the flat stretch 34 of segment 14 in an upwardly facing position. Accordingly, indicia might be placed upon stretch 34 to provide a convenient display for advertising purposes.

To remove clip 10 it is but necessary to pull locking head 18 from the pocket 16, taking full advantage of the ribs 56 on segment 12 which are provided for this purpose. Should it become necessary to once again seal the bag, clip 10 may be easily replaced thereon without fear of damage or wear to the clip 10.

It will be seen therefore, that the novel, one-piece design of my clip 10 permits the manufacture thereof by low-cost methods such as by an extrusion process. Further, clip 10 may be provided in a variety of sizes which are related to the type of job called for with equal effectiveness in each of these sizes whether it is used as a retaining clip or a sealing device.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A clip comprising:

a pair of hingedly interconnected segments of resilient material;

a pocket defined by one of said segments; and

a locking head on the other segment shiftable into and out of said pocket whereby to retain sheets of flexible material disposed between said segments in juxtaposed relationship,

said segments being interconnected by a neck portion presenting a line of Weakness whereby said segments may hinge about said line when said head is shifted out of said pocket to present an opening between said locking head and said pocket for receiving said sheets of flexible material,

said one segment being generally transversely J-shaped presenting a flat stretch which extends from said neck and terminates in a hook portion forming said pocket.

2. The invention of claim 1,

said hook portion having a head at the free end thereof projecting into said pocket whereby to retain said locking head within the pocket.

3. The invention of claim 2,

said other segment having a substantially U-shaped stretch extending from said neck and presenting a pair of legs and a bight therebetween for receiving and aligning said sheets of flexible material.

4. The invention of claim 3,

there being an outwardly projecting, curved extension 0 on one of said legs, said locking head being carried by said extension.

4 5. The invention of claim 4, said one leg having a series of ribs formed thereon whereby to facilitate manipulation of said locking head into and out of said pocket.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,292,223 12/1966 Esposito 24l37 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,286,849 1/1962 France 22962 OTHER REFERENCES M 18945, May 1956, Mahel 24243.9, German printed application.

DONALD A. GRIFFIN, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 

